Revenue department completes boundary marking of Neelakurinji sanctuary

Nineteen years after the declaration of the the Neelakurinji sanctuary in Idukki, the Revenue department has finally completed marking the boundaries of the sanctuary.

It was on October 6, 2006 that the former Forest Minister Binoy Viswom announced a 32-sq-km Neelakurinji sanctuary at the Kottakkamboor-Vattavada area in Devikulam taluk in Munnar. But the boundary marking and survey of the sanctuary had remained on paper for long. Last month Revenue Minister K. Rajan directed that the survey and boundary marking be completed soon.

Devikulam Subcollector V.M. Arya said that the survey and boundary marking had been completed. “The settlement verification process will begin soon,” said Ms. Arya.

Neelakurinji in bloom inside the Neelakurinji sanctuary in Vattavada, near Munnar, in Idukki. (File photo)
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SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT

The former president of the Vattavada panchayat K. Ramaraj said that finally the Revenue department heard the voices of the people living in the area. “After the government announced the sanctuary, the Forest department blocked all development activities in the area under the name of the sanctuary. The government should verify the people holding land with title deeds and land in possession and issue title deeds for land in possession to farmers,” said Mr Ramaraj.

Road-widening work

Mr. Ramaraj further said that before the final declaration of the sanctuary, the government should complete the road widening work on the Kottakkamboor-Clavara stretch connecting Kodaikanal in Tamil Nadu. “With the development of the 9-km ghat road from Kottakkamboor to Clavara, the distance between Munnar and Kodaikanal will be just 98 km. Currently, tourists from Munnar should travel 287 km to reach Kodaikanal. If the road is reopened, it will boost tourism in Munnar and Kodaikanal,” said Mr. Ramaraj.

Check-dams

According to residents, three check-dams were constructed inside the Neelakurinji sanctuary area with the funds of the local body to ensure water availability for farmers in the Vattavada panchayat during the summer season. “The government should allow people to use the water even after the final declaration of the sanctuary,” said Mr. Ramaraj.

Munnar wildlife warden K.V. Harikrishnan said that the Neelakurinji sanctuary came under the 58 and 62 blocks in Kottakkamboor. “The Forest department will ensure the protection of the sanctuary area once the Revenue department completes the boundary marking and settlement verification process,” said Mr. Harikrishnan.

The Neelakurinji sanctuary is being set up with the aim of protecting the Neelakurinji plants in the Kottakkamboor area. In December 2017, a Cabinet subcommittee comprising the then Revenue Minister E. Chandrasekharan, Forest Minister K. Raju and Power Minister M.M. Mani visited the areas proposed to be included in the sanctuary to take stock of the situation. However, the survey and boundary fixing were further delayed by around eight years.